Ryanair chief executive Mr Michael O'Leary and the Ryan family have realised nearly €47 million apiece from the sale of shares in the no-frills airline.

The 14 million shares, representing around 2 per cent of the company, were sold yesterday morning by Davy Stockbrokers at a price of €6.70 per share.

After gaining nearly 12 per cent in the wake of Monday's bumper results, the shares slipped back by 2 per cent yesterday to close at €6.80.

This latest sale means the Ryan family, which includes the airline's founder Dr Tony Ryan, has sold more than €340 million worth of Ryanair shares since the company floated on the stock market five years ago.

When Ryanair floated in 1997, the Ryan family sold €61 million worth of shares and followed this with a €26 million sale in 1998 and another €175 million worth a year later.

Dr Ryan's two sons, Cathal and Declan, separately sold €11.4 million worth of shares in 2000 while Dr Ryan sold €21.3 million last November.

Following the latest sale, the family's shareholding has been reduced to around 10 per cent.

Mr O'Leary has also been a regular seller of shares since the flotation and has now realised more than €175 million. This is the fourth occasion on which he has sold stock but he remains the largest individual shareholder in the company with around 45 million shares or 6 per cent of the company. Ryanair shares have risen sharply since the airline released full-year results on Monday.

The figures, which showed profits climbing by 44 per cent to €150.4 million, were well ahead of expectations and were greeted with a slew of upgrades and recommendations from analysts.

Schroder Salomon Smith Barney became the latest broker to issue a positive note on the stock when it raised its share price target for the low-cost carrier to €8 from €6.80 yesterday.

The bank also said it was retaining its "outperform" stance on the stock.

The strong profit growth comes against the background of a difficult year for the airline sector following the events of September 11th and the earlier outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Britain and the Republic.

Ryanair is now positioning itself to overtake British Airways as Europe's largest passenger carrier within five years and has stepped up its annual growth target to 30-35 per cent.

Dealers reported strong demand for the shares yesterday with investor interest from across the board.